A Changing World
by SagaChronicles
Summary: A zombie virus starts to infect Lima, some of the glee club are left to survive in McKinley. When Brittany flees to find her family Santana is left worried and lonely, she decides to embark on a quest to find her girlfriend no matter what the consequences are. Please R & R :)
1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER : I DO NOT OWN GLEE OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS**

It's been almost nine months since it happened, since I've left this compound.

Nobody come sin and nobody goes out, except the guards. They're three of the boys who nominated themselves to be a look out. They make sure we all stay safe. Finn , Puck and Sam. They're the lucky ones. I'm not allowed out of the choir room without somebody coming with me. They're extra protective with me, they think that I'm going to flip out one of these days or try and escape. I can't go to the bathroom without Rachel or Quinn at my side.

It wasn't always this bad. We used all be equal and look out for each other, nobody was in charge of anybody else and there was no restrictions on sleep or music or water. But that was six months ago, before Brittany ran away.

She just couldn't take it anymore, not knowing what was on the outside. I think we were all lucky not to have cracked within those three months. They were much easier than times are now but at least we had hope.

The virus first became public about a year ago. It started somewhere in Mexico, almost half a town had caught it. The town was shut down and it's infected citizens detained while the healthy ones fled. But little did they know that some of them were infected too, they caught it through the air, which takes longer to effect the body. Those citizens moved to the States and before we knew it, a new person was infected everyday.

Thousands of doctors and scientists tried working on a cure. They should have just shot the infected, because while they were working on a cure the infected got to the flesh eating stage. We knew it was spreading but we didn't realize how fast it actually spread, we didn't know that it only takes one hoard of zombies to infect a whole town in less than two hours.

_It was a Saturday and we had practice for Nationals. Mr. Schuester decided we needed more practice, maybe he should have thought about the fact that a killer virus was in the air. But living in Lima Heights Adjacent, you learn how to be tough, our immune system is so strong , we never even got the flu, so it didn't really bother me that maybe that was the day the virus would come to Lima. So I went to Glee club._

_I arrived ten minutes late. Rachel, Finn, Kurt, Blaine, Puck, Sam, Quinn and Brittany were waiting for there alongside Mr. Schuester who was sitting at the piano ._

_"Hey Santana, thanks for coming," Mr. Schu smiled._

_"Wheres everyone else?" I asked puzzled._

_"I guess everyone's parents are freaked about the virus," Quinn sighed. "Please, what could possibly attract a zombie to Lima?"_

_"They're not zombies Quinn," Schu corrected her. "They're infected. It's a horrible disease and we just need to pray that none of us can catch it. We shouldn't be worried."_

_"Then why did you bring Ms. Pillsbury to work with you?" Rachel asked._

_"Ms. Pillsbury wasn't comfortable staying by herself so she came to hear you guys practice."_

_"I hear it's getting really bad," Puck announced, making things worse. "It came up through the south and now Kentucky's after getting it. They're trying to detain anyone who's been effected."_

_"Kentucky?" Rachel gasped. "But how could it reach Kentucky that fast? That means we're next!"_

_"Oh my god Berry shut up!" I groaned. " Can we just get on with this?"_

_"Santana," Quinn says and I snap back to the present. "I'm going to check where the guys got to, will you be ok? Rachel's over in the corner by the piano."_

"Yes Quinn," I say tensely. "I'll still be alive when you return."

Everything's become tense since Brittany left, I haven't had the same relationship with anyone since. I have nobody to properly talk to. It's times like this when I really miss her. I can only fear the worst, I'm afraid she's out there eating some poor soul's flesh off. It's horrible to picture, Brittany, the girl who wouldn't hurt a fly, is out there killing.


	2. Chapter 2

_It was midday when we finished singing, we had been there for over two hours._

_"Ok guys, that's it for today, I'll see you next week," Mr. Schu said as he finished playing the notes on the piano. "Go __home."_

_Rachel and Finn got up to leave together. Everyone else stayed in the room chatting with each other. Brittany was telling me her plans for her next "Fondue for Two" video._

_Then we heard a high pitched scream from the hallway and Rachel Berry came rushing in, her face distraught and tears strolling down her face. Finn, who's face had turned white came rushing in behind her._

_"Rachel? Finn? What's wrong?" Mr. Schue asked, concerned. He put his hand on Ms. Pillsbury's shoulder._

_"Mr. Schue, we can't go home," Finn muttered. "There's three of them outside."_

_"Three of what Finn?"_

_"ZOMBIES!" Rachel screamed. There was a silence in the room. I stood there in shock as my heart beat increased. Brittany gripped my hand._

_"Sam, Finn, Puck, come with me now, we need to lock all the doors and windows. Kurt, Blaine, watch Ms. Pillsbury and Rachel!" Schue ordered sternly. I looked over to Ms. Pillsbury who looked like she was on the verge of a mental breakdown. Kurt and Blaine ran to her side._

_"Santana," Brittany breathed. She said no more but I knew what she was thinking._

_"I know," I replied. We were never going home._

Quinn comes back and sits down beside me.

"What are you thinking about?" She asks.

"Everything," I reply.

" Santana, I'm worried about you, you're angry and sad all the time, I haven't seen you smile in six months."

"Oh yeah? Because this is such a happy place?" I snap, I completely flip out. " Quinn what's wrong with you? We've been here nine months, surrounded by zombies who were once family. We've been living off cafeteria food and we can't even go outside. What the fuck is there to smile about?"

"I'm sorry,"She sighs. "But this is just as hard for us too, Brittany was my friend. My family are out there too and so is my daughter, I know I was never a real mother but these times make you wish you had done things differently. I'm just trying to help you Santana. The last thing we need is another person with mental issues."

She's referring to Ms. Pillsbury, who completely broke down a few months back. Mr. Schue has to tranquilize her every night with sleeping pills to stop her from screaming and attracting the zombies. But he's running short, we're running short of everything, he promised that they're going to go out soon looking for more weapons and supplies. The last time the guard went out they found guns and bullets, but that was months ago, before Brittany left. There's more zombies since. There's not going to be enough of them to fight off all those zombies.

_Schue came back to the choir room with the three guys._

_He ran to his girlfriend and kissed her. "We're safe," he announced . "For now, but we can;t use bright lights or make noise or they will sense us. I read it in one of those government leaflets. I'm so sorry guys. This is all my fault. We'll try to get you home as soon as possible." But of course we never got home._

_"It's ok Mr. Schue you couldn't have known," Puck replied sympathetically. "We have more than enough to survive, I'm sure the Infection Control guys will be here soon."_

_"Ok but until then guys take care of your use of supplies, we don't know how long we'll be here," He replied._

_"At least you're here," Brittany whispered in my ear. I could sense a tone of fear in her voice. I kissed her cheek and thanked God that she was by my side._


	3. Chapter 3

If there was one thing I could have been grateful it was the fact that I had Brittany beside me.

_It had been two days_ _we had locked ourselves into the school._

_"How long do you think we'll be here?" Brittany asked me as she huddled into my shoulder._

_"I don't know," I replied honestly._

_"Do you think they're ok out there? Our famillies, the others? Artie, Tina, Mike, Mercedes, they're all outside," she wimpered."Can it spread much in two days?"_

_"I'm sure everybody's fine, I'm sure infection control has it under control, they're just making sure the air is clear,we'll be out in a few days.I'm sure everyone is fine," I said confidently enough to convinve her but I wasn't convincing myself, if at least three people had caught it in two hours how many would catch it in two days. I held her closer to me, I couldn't lose her. She was the only thing stopping me from freaking out._

_"I hope we get to go home soon," she sighed. "I miss Lord Tubbington."_

A few weeks past and we stayed hopeful,I told Brittany the same thing every day. I couldn't let her break down but it wasn't enough. She began to count the days in a calender from Figgins' office.

_"Santana, it's been three months and eight days," She moaned. "You lied to me. I want to go home, I need to see my parents and this cafeteria food is making me sick. I'm going home."_

_"No!" I exclaimed. "Brittany, it's not safe out there, we're safe as long as we're in here, we can't have much longer until we can go outside again."  
"You say that everyday Santana," Brittany whined. "I need to get out. It can't be that bad outside."  
"No Brittany, you're staying here," I told her. "Everything's ok, we have each other ok?"_

_"Santana!" She snapped suddenly, causing me to jump. "I can't take it anymore ok? I need to see my family. I'm going to get some air."_

_I grabbed her wrist to pull her back but she shrugged me off. _

_"Let me go Santana!" She shouted and stormed out of the choir room towards the rest rooms. She didn't come back._

I look around me, I seem to be the only one awake. Rachel is huddled into Finn and Kurt into Blaine, and Mr. Schu has his hand wrapped tightly around Ms. Pillsbury. They all look so protective of each other, it makes me wish I had been more protective of Brittany. Quinn and Puck are just sleeping by themselves in two seperate corners of the room, I'm surprised that they're not back together yet. They seem to be getting closer everyday and I can't remember the last time Puck went this long without even making out with a girl. Couples make me sick now.

I get up to leave the room, it's the only time I can leave without Quinn or Rachel fussing over me. Sam is outside on guard somewhere, they make sure nobody comes in or goes out at night.

I walk along the hallway and find him sitting with his gun at a locked and blackened out door.

"Hey Trouthy Mouth," I tease. He turns around startled.

"Can't sleep?"

"What's the point, when I sleep I'm having nightmares, when I'm awake I'm living one," I reply.

"Mr. Schu said we're going out tomorrow," He sighs. "I'm terrified. We've seen them from the windows Santana, there's so many of them. We'll have to be careful. But four of us can't take them all. Most of them only come out at night but the smallest sounds can get their attention."

"Let me come!" I exclaim. "Please, I'll help you. You guys need more help if you want to get more supplies."

"I don't know Santana, you mightn't be able-"

"Please, I'm stronger than all of you ladies put together!" I protest.

"I don't know what Mr. Schu will think," Sam sighs.

"I'm really tired of this, everybody needs to stop acting like I'm fucking suicidal or something."

"I'm sorry Santana but you did smash a glass cabinet when Brittany left and you tried to run away," Sam replies.

"But that was months ago!" I groan. "I really want to help."

"Fine, I'll ask Mr. Schu, just don't flip if he says no," Sam sighs.


	4. Chapter 4

Whatever Sam has said, it has paid off. This is finally my chance to find her.

"Finn, give Santana a gun," Mr. Schu says in the morning.

"Mr. Schu, is this really a good idea?" Quinn asks. She doesn't trust me. Finn hands me a small silver hand gun which they found last time they went out. I get use to the feel of it in my hands.

"If Santana wants to help we'll let her," Mr. Schu sighs. "It's doing her no help locked up here the whole time."

"Make sure she comes back," I hear Rachel whisper into Finn's ear. "Take care of yourself Finn."  
" I love you," Finn replies and kisses her.

I rolled my eyes. "Come on, can't we just leave already?"

"Santana, we have to be patient and careful, remember don't let them see you. If you see any nearby, get out of there as quielty as you can, don't shoot unless you have to, they gunshot will alert more of them," explains as he loads up his shot gun with bullets.

"Will, don't go!" Ms. Pillsbury cries. He kisses her gently on the head then looks to us. " Gather what you need, we'll live in five minutes exactly."

"Come with me, I'll equip you with what you need." Sam offers. I nod and accept his offer. I follow him down the hallway and he opens a locker which is filled with bullets and all sorts of other items.

He throws me a small shoulder bag. "You'll need this." He throws me a match box full of bullets which I place inside the bag. He then hands me a walkie talkie which they also found.

"Lucky we found five eh?" He half smiles,it's still the biggest smile I've seen in a few days. "Contact me if you are in trouble. Use your bag to collect anything that might be useful, food, ammunition, anything. You need to wrap up warm, it's terrifyingly cold out there. Here, you can have these."

He throws me a pair of black cotton gloves which fit comfortably over my hands. "Thanks."

"Santana, why do you want to come out with us so badly?"

"I need to find her Sam? She can't survive by herself," I reply.

"It's been six months Santana, what if it's too late, what if she's dead or worse?"

"Well at least I'll know won't I?" I mutter. "You can't possibly understand what it feels like, it's like one of those zombies has ripped my heart out."

"We all know people out there Santana," Sam replies. "It's not just you, we all share the same pain. My family is out there, my little brother and sister. You're not in this by yourself you know?"

I feel pretty bad now, I've been kind of selfish I guess, but I just hate feeling this way. It's been unnerving thinking about where Brittany is everyday and if she is ok, and wondering if she's even still alive. Maybe she's tougher than I thought, maybe she's in a much better position than we are. Maybe she doesn't even need to keep watch every night in case a zombie is approaching.

I've only seen zombies on one occasion. It was exactly a week after Brittany had left, there were a dozen of them on the football field. Their skin was green and rotted and there was blood all over their faces. Some of them had lost limbs. They walked around slowly as they groaned. We watched them from a classroom window upstairs. They were too far away to identify. Rachel opened her mouth to scream but Finn pressed his hand against her.

_"They're getting closer," Quinn exclaimed._

_"We can get them," Puck announced. "But it could be loud."_

_"Go downstairs !" Mr. Schu ordered. "Sam , Finn, Puck, aim your guns. I want the rest of you to turn off all the lights. We have to stay completely silent for the next while. These shots will attract more. I'll go outside and lock the gates, I'll have time. They won't get this close again."_

_My heart sank, what if Brittany was one of those out on the field, but I had a feeling deep down that she wasn't._

_"Will! Be careful!" Ms. P wailed._

_"Emma, stay strong for me ok?" Mr. Schu replied as he passed some sleeping pills behind his back to Blaine. "_

_We hid out in the choir room in complete darkness as we heard the gunshots fire. I counted them, thirty exactly. They were stronger than I thought, one bullet was simply not enough to take down a zombie._

_I lay silent in the darkness and prayed in my mind for Brittany. I don't know who I was praying to, but I just hoped somebody was listening for a change._

"Come on we should go," Sam says and he closes his locker. We walk back to the choir room and I grab the fur hooded jacket that I brought with me to practice nine months ago.

Quinn puts her hand on my shoulder and grips it tightly. I can feel her long nails digging into my skin. "Santana, don't do anything stupid," she warns. "You come back here , do you hear me? Don't go running off to find her."

"Quinn let go of me," I say through my clenched teeth. "I'll be fine."

"We need to get moving," Mr. Schu announces. "Guys, make sure you don't unlock the doors for anyone but us, make sure we haven't been bitten or infected first. Be careful ok?"

"Please take care of yourselves," Rachel whimpers as she gives Finn one more kiss on the cheek.

"Goodbye Emma, " Mr. Schu smiles as he carefully unlocks the door. The cool air hits us like knives.


	5. Chapter 5

We slowly walk out of the McKinley Campus.

The first thing that hits me is the smell. I cover my mouth with my mouth. It smells like rotten fish except worse. I really have never smelt anything this bad before. I take in my surroundings, everything is just, dead. There are no leaves on the trees or birds in the sky. The sky is just an ugly grey, it looks like there hasn't been sunshine in this town in months.

The buildings around us are derelict, windows have been smashed in and doors knocked down. Cars have been parked in the middle of the road and we have to carefully walk around them. I could never have imagined Lima this horrible. Dead is really the only word that can describe it. The place has a miserable and eery feeling to it. I continue to walk with my hand gun clenched tightly.

"Watch out," Sam hisses and points towards the ground. I jump back as I see the remains of a torn apart body on the floor. There is little flesh left on the faceless skeleton, the thought that I almost stepped on it makes me cry out in horror. If we're not careful, this is what will become us.

"Santana!" Mr. Schu warns. "We have to stay quiet. We can't attract them to us!"

"I think we need to split up," Puck suggests. "If we go in pairs or groups or threes, we can find more supplies."  
"Ok," Mr. Schu sighs. "Good idea Puck."  
"Santana can come with me," Sam suggests. "We can look for food if you guys look for guns."

Finn and Puck seem hesitant.

"Fine, we meet back here in two hours," Mr. Scu agrees. " But if we're not here just get back to the school, as soon as you can, understand?"

We both nod.

"Come on guys, let's go," Mr. Schu announces and the three of them go their own way.

"Why did you do that?" I ask Sam.

"Because I know that Finn and Puck wouldn't let you out of their sights if they were with you. I understand you need space."

"Sam, why are you doing this? Being so nice to me? I was never exactly friendly to you, even when we dated."

"I don't know," he shrugs. "I guess I hate seeing you so sad all the time. Come on, I know where we can go."

I follow him as we walk down the street. "There's a corner store nearby." Sam explains. "The motel I lived in is just down that road."

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that, that was a pretty shit time wasnt it?"

"Not as bad as now," Sam sighs and with a short laugh says. "It's funny because back then I was sure things couldn't get worse and look at me now."

We walk in silence for a few minutes until we come to a street I have only visited a few times. The abandoned shops along the street are boarded up and abandoned. The wind is the only sound to be heard. It breezes coolly around us , making me shiver.

"Did you see many the last time?" I ask Sam in a whisper.

"A few," Sam replies. "Only from a distance. They seem to come out more at night time. The important thing is to stay quiet and unnoticed if you see them. If you have time you can outrun them but you must make sure they can't follow you. Here, this is it."

We stop outside a fading yellow building. above the door is a sign that reads "Hal's Corner Store," but the paint has faded so much that it can barely be read.

The door and windows are covered up with rusty chains and wooden boards. Sam forcefully pulls off a wooden board off the windows and breaks the glass with his foot. He climbs in the window and lands on the tiled floor inside.

"Do you need a hand?" He asks me as I go to climb in too.

"No I have it," I reply and climb slowly in the window

I jump off the ledge on to floor. The store is a mess, boxes have been pushed off their shelves onto the floor which has also been covered in broken glass bottles and liquids.

"Watch you step, you don't want to cut yourself," Sam advises. "Just grab whatever you can fit into your bag. Canned food is the best. We also need some water."

I start browsing the shelves and throwing any can of food I can into my bag, i find some band aids at the counter which might come in handy later. I manage to fit two bottles of water into my shoulder bag too.

Sam's backpack is now also full with supplies. "Come on, " he says. "That's all we can get for the moment, it should last a while, we should head back to the others."

He climbs out the window after he checks that the street is safe. "Come on," He whispers when he is safely out. I climb out the broken window too quickly and manage to slash my arm off the jagged glass. I show no emotion so I don't worry Sam, anyway it can't be that bad.

We walk back up the street when I feel warm liquid running down my arm, I look at the rip in my jacket and realise the cut is much worse than I thought. When Sam isn't looking I pull out some water and wash off the blood and press some band aids down on the gash.

I catch up to Sam and pretend like nothing happened. "Sssh, " Sam stops. "Do you hear that?"

"What?" I ask but then I hear it , a low groaning noise coming from behind us. I turn around sharply and then I see them. A group of zombies walking slowly towards in the distance.

"Run!" Sam shouts. He begins to run and I do the same. I can feel adrenaline pumping through my body.

"Santana! What happened to you?" He exclaims as we continue to run. He nods towards my hand where there's some dry blood.

"I'm sorry, I cut my arm on the broken glass," I pant.

"Why didn't you tell me, they have amazing sense of smell!"

"I'm sorry!" I cry. "I panicked ok?" I trip over a stone and fall to the ground. A zombie approaches me from nowhere.

"Santana!" Sam shouts. My head is spinning as the zombie closes in on me. Her clothes have ripped and one side of her face has rotted. She makes a groan as she reaches out her bloodied hand to my face.

This is it, I think, I'm dead. I clench my gun which has fallen beside me and I try to aim but my hands are shaking too much.

I hear a gunshot and the zombie falls dead, on top of me. Sam grabs the corpse off me and helps me up.

"Thanks," i sigh, "I really owe you one." I stand up and look into the open eyes of the motionless body on the ground. And then I recognise the small body and black hair and dark clothes.

"Tina," I breathe. "Oh my god."

"I'm sorry, " Sam says to the corpse. He's trying to fight back tears. "I'm really sorry Tina."

"She's better off anyway," I manage to get out. "We need to keep going. The others will catch up. if we don't hurry up."

We stay silent as we walk on, both shocked and upset by the event. I try not to think about it but the only thought that fills my head is of what has become of my girlfriend.

Sam's hand suddenly presses against my mouth. "Don't make a sound," he sighs in a quivering voice. "Don't look around you just keep going as quietly as you can."

But I'm so surprised by his sudden movement that I turn to my right and then I see it. It's another group of zombies in a car park across the road. They wander slowly around with bloody and rotting bodies. I see why Sam wanted me to look away, I recognise the layered brown hair and striped red dress of Sugar Motta. From here I can see that there is no flesh left on the bottom part of her face. I guess even her daddy's money couldn't get them out of this situation. But I don't see why Sam would get me so worked up about that, I never particularly liked her.

I look closer, knowing that there must something else there. My heart stops beating as I see her. Among the hoard, she's there, her now dirty blonde hair and covered in black blood. Words can't describe the feeling. My eyes well up with tears. Even Sam's hand isn't strong enough to keep the scream out of me.

"BRITTANY!"

The group all turn their heads towards us.

"Crap," Sam sighs. With his free hand, he grabs my wrist and he begins to run with me as the hoard begin to make their way towards us.

"


	6. Chapter 6

Tears start streaming down my face as Sam continues to pull me. Now I know what's become of Brittany and probably of all my family.

"Come on Santana," Sam whispers. "We need to go faster."

We see Finn running towards us as we reach the street at which we last saw them. He looks anxious and flustered.

"What's up?" Sam asks." Where's Puck and Schu?"

"Mr. Schu, he's been bitten, we split up for a minute, then we heard him shout, this zombie appeared out of nowhere and bit his shoulder. Pucks over there with him."

"Oh my god!" I exclaim. "What are we going to do?" But I know that we all really know the solution.

"We only have one option," Sam .

"Who's going to do it?" Finn asks.

"I'll do it," Sam replies. "You guys knew him longer than I did anyway." He takes his gun tight in his hand and walks over to Puck. Finn and I follow.

Puck looks up at us, he is kneeling beside who is barely conscious. His blue shirt is covered in his own blood. His skin is already beginning to whiten.

"I'm glad it was one of you guys," he croaks. " Take care of yourselves, you guys can get through anything together. I know it. Tell Emma I love her."

He gently closes his eyes. "Do it," Puck whispers as he stands up.

"I'm sorry ," Sam sniffs as he puts the gun at his temple and pulls the trigger.

I fall to the ground beside him, I can't believe it is gone. He was always there for us, no matter what, it's like I've lost my father. I don't know what we're going to do now, he kept us together and sane.

"We need to go," Sam announces. "There will be more on the way."

"What about the body?" I whimper, I feel like such a loser but at this point I don't even care.

"We have to leave it," Sam replies, "other wise they'll track down the smell."

Puck lifts me off the ground. "Come on Santana," he whispers. "At least he's out of this shithole."

I don't even have the strength to tell Puck that it's not Mr. Schu's death that has really upset me. I walk slowly back to McKinley, the boys keep urging me to walk faster but I don't have the energy.

We finally reach the school, Finn unlocks the door and we make our way inside, bolting the door securely behind us. We hear the others racing down the hallway to greet us.

"Finn!" Rachel exclaims. She runs into her boyfriend's arm and kisses him. "Thank goodness you're safe."

The others join us. " Santana," Quinn smiles with relief and throws her arms around me. She looks like she's been worried.

"Where is he?" Ms. P cries. "What happened to Will?"

Finn and Puck both put a hand on each of her shoulder. "We're really sorry Ms. Pillsbury, we split up , we thought it was safe but it wasn't, but he's in a better place now, he died before he got the chance to change, he wanted you to know that he loves you."

She bursts into tears and starts to scream hysterically. "Will! No! He can't be dead."

Blaine and Kurt take her and try to quieten her. She could wake the dead at this rate.

"Please , take these," Blaine pleads holding out tranquilizing tablets. She takes them and swallows them.

"We'll take her to the choir room," Kurt whispers, he looks pale, everyone is in shock.

"Quinn, Rachel, can you sit Santana down and get her something to drink, she's in shock," Sam asks. I don't say anything, I just let them bring me away gently by the hand. They lead me to the choir room and sit me down, Rachel leaves some water and sleeping pills beside me.

"What happened?" Quinn hisses in a whisper to Sam, she doesn't realize I can hear her. "She doesn't look right! She looks than the three of you combined!"

"It was pretty crazy out there Quinn," Sam sighs sadly. "First she was attacked by Tina, just in another form, I had to shoot her and then she saw her."

"Brittany?" Rachel exclaims. Sam nods. They seem to have forgotten I'm only meters away.

"Has she changed?" Quinn asks.

"Yes, we saw her in a car parking lot along with Sugar, Santana screamed so we had to run and then we bumped into Finn and she watched me shoot Mr. Schu, she's not going to recover quickly, you need to watch her constantly."  
I laugh to myself, so what have they been doing up to now.

"I will I promise," Quinn whispers back. "She won't go anywhere without either Rachel or me."

But Quinn is wrong, because even she cannot hold me back, I'm going back out there, to find Brittany.


	7. Chapter 7

I lay awake, there's no use in trying to sleep because I know I can't after everything I saw today. Nothing will be the same again. She's out there among them, a life sucking monster, but that's not Brittany, surely there's some part of her that will recognise me. She can't have completely lost her conscience, I believe that once she sees me, she'll remember me. She won't harm me.

I want to get up and leave right now but I can't Rachel and Quinn are at either side of me, sitting on chairs to make sure I don't go anywhere. We remain silent. I don't think anybody is asleep except for Ms. Pillsbury, Kurt and Blaine have joined the other three boys in keeping guard so there are only four of us in the choir room.

I need to think of someway to escape and find Brittany. It's probably easier to escape during the day, I can pretend I'm going for a shower, I'm sure I can squeeze out the bathroom windows. I'll be off the campus before they realise I'm gone.

Every minute seems slower than the last, I sit up and glance at the clock above the door, it's only two o clock, I see Rachel and Quinn move to the edge of their seats. I think they're afraid to blink in case I disappear.

I stand up slowly.

"Where are you going?" Quinn asks immediatley. She's out of her chair standing inches away from me.

"I can't just lie here for another five hours, I'm going for a walk ok?" I roll my eyes.

"Fine, I'm coming too," Quinn decides. "Rachel, will you watch Ms. P? Although those sleeping pills are pretty strong, they'll have her knocked out for a while."

"Sure, "Rachel smiles sleepily and leans back into her chair.

I walk briskly out into the corridor . I have no destination in mind but I need space.

"Santana, please slow down," Quinn whines. I don't listen, I just keep walking. I can hear her almost running behind me.

"Hey Quinn, Santana," Puck greets, as we approach the door he's guarding. "What are you guys doing?"

"Hey Puck, we're just going for a stroll, " Quinn replies. I can hear them talking but I'm too distracted by the unchained window ten meters away to make out their words. I could do it now, I'll have to be fast or find somewhere to hide, they won't come after me in the dark, they'll just attract zombies to the school. And before I know it, I'm running to the window. I forcefully pull it open, I swing my leg out of it as I hear Quinn screaming my name.

"Santana! Come back here!" She screams at the top of her lungs.

I'm almost out, I can smell the dead scent from outside when I'm pulled back inside by the waist. The window is snapped shut and I scream.

"NO!" I scream, Puck holds me by my arms and I am unable to move. "No! Let me go! Get the fuck away from me! I need to go out!"  
Quinn is trying to quieten me down, she looks horrified. I free my right hand and scratch Puck's face and he releases me, but I'm grabbed by Finn who has joined us.

"Let me go!" I scream. I need to get out of here, I need to find Brittany. I can't stay here any longer.

"Santana, please, "Quinn whispers. "Please calm down."

I try to struggle out of Finn's arms but I can't. "No!" I continue to scream. "You don't understand, I need to get out of here, I need to find her!"

Sam runs towards us. "She has to stop screaming, she'll attract them."

"JUST LET ME GO GOD DAMMNIT!" I scream louder than ever.

"Quinn, get the pills!" Puck orders.

Quin approaches me with two pink pills in her palm. "Get the hell away from me Quinn!" I snap. Finn holds up my head as Quinn jams the pills into my mouth and forces me to swallow. Within seconds, I feel drowsy.

"Quinn, Puck, get her back to the choir room, "Sam orders and I am unwillingly placed into Puck's arms. As he carries me down the hall, I find it harder to keep my eyes open until it is no longer possible.


	8. Chapter 8

When I wake I feel like I've slept for a thousand years.

I flutter open my eyes, Rachel is beside me, she looks anxious.

"How long was I asleep?" I groan, rubbing me eyes.

"About 14 hours, " she replies. "Quinn! She's awake!" She shouts it in a loud stutter, I think I've frightened her. I see her wiping her eyes.

"Where's Quinn?" I ask. "What's wrong with you Berry?"

Quinn comes dashing in.

"Santana! Thank god!" Quinn sighs, her face is a sickly white color. Something's not right.

"What's wrong with you? Are you afraid I'm going to run again? Fat chance of that happening now!" I moan. "Why don't you just let me go, it's safer for all of you-"

"No, Santana, would you stop thinking about yourself for a minute!" She snaps cutting me off. "Ms. Pillsbury is dead!"

I bite my lip in shock. "What? How?"

"We think she overdosed on sleeping pills," Quinn replies.

"But when?" I ask. "Those pills knocked me out for hours!"

"We don't know," Rachel sighs. "We think that maybe she didn't really swallow them last night. We left the bottle of pills beside her last night after we gave them to you, we thought she was asleep. But this morning we found the bottle and it was empty."

"I'm not going to describe to you the state we found her in, but it wasn't pretty," Quinn says.

I remember after Brittany left, I kept thinking of ways to kill myself. Pills was one of them, I'm glad I didn't, I know now where Brittany is. But if she did die, I wouldn't even hesitate to kill myself. Poor Ms. Pillsbury.

"But what are we going to do with the body?" I ask.

Rachel and Quinn look at each other.

"Well the boys have gone-" Rachel says before she is cutoff by Quinn.

" RACHEL! NO!" She snaps. They both look at me, I realise what Rachel was going to say. They're all gone except the two of them. They can't hold me down.

Quinn reaches for my wrist but I shrug her away. I grab my shoes quickly from the ground.

"Santana no!" Quinn snarls trying to grab me but I run straight past her. I run out of the choir room like a bullet and down the corridors, I hear them running and panting behind me.

"Santana come back!" Rachel cries. "Don't go out there! It's dangerous!"

But I keep running. No words can convince me not too.

I pull open a window and jump out, and run off campus. I've run too fats for them to catch up with me. Maybe they'll realize that it would have been a much better idea to let me out a long time ago.

My only problem now is to try and avoid the others. It might be hard but I'm sure it's managable, I have a destination in mind. I'm going back to the parking lot. I have a good feeling that she will be there.

I walk down creepy alleyways that I have never walked down myself, but its the only way to avoid the boys. I don't know exactly where they've gone but as opposed to me, they'll consider safety.

As I walk carefully down the alley I hear footsteps from the connecting street. I hold my breath, maybe it's zombies. I duck down between some rubbish bags and a dumpster.

"We need to hurry back," The unmistakable voice of Finn says.

"Yeah, Santana will probably wake up soon, we should get back before she realises we're gone, poor Quinn and Rachel must be out of their minds with worry, she'll take them down like a wild cat," Puck says. "It was kind of stupid for all five of us to come."  
"But necessary," Kurt chirps in. It's far more dangerous out here! Espeicially when burying a body, I hope they don't find her."  
Their voices fade as they continue to walk, then it hits me. I'll probably never see them again. I didn't even get to say goodbye properly to them. But I can't start feeling sorry for myself now, I've come to far to go back.

I keep walking, I think I'm almost near the back entrance of the parking lot, it might be easier to get Brittany's attention. I understand that this might mean the end of the of my human life, but at least I'll be with Brittany. I don't know what her life now is like, can they think or talk? Or do they just have a constant lust for blood. Maybe their brains are so badly effected that they don't realize they're eating humans.

The smell of rotting flesh gets stronger. I'm only meters away, I can see them behind a wire fence. Dozens of them, more than last time. Just walking around and groaning, I see Sugar but she's not the only one I recognise, I see David , it's horrifying, his face half hanging off and an eye hanging from its socket. How did I ever date that guy?

Then I see her, she's literally ten feet away, if only she turned around she would see me. I could grab her before any of the rest of them noticed.

I get ready to climb under the fence, when I hear a heavy breathing behind me. I turn around to see a zombie diving towards me. I screech. I've nobody to save me now.

The zombies bloody teeth show as they come closer to my skin. I close my eyes, my human life is about to end. I didn't want it to end like this.

"Noo," I hear a loud feminine groan. "Away!"

The response is a bitterly disappointed sounding grunt. And I hear someone walking slowly away.

I flicker open my eyes to see the new zombie that stands before me. I gasp.

"Santana," she hisses. "What are you doing here?"


	9. Chapter 9

Her cold hand covered with black blood grabs my wrist and drags me away from the parking lot.

"Brittany! I knew you'd recognize me!" I squeal. "Are you ok? Do you understand what I'm saying to you?"  
"Santana, "she repeats. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to find you Brit, I tried to come sooner but the others wouldn't let me because we thought you were dead but then I saw you the other day and I saw you were well, a zombie."

She looks at me. "Santana," she whispers. "I'm not a zombie."

"What?" I exclaim. "But look at you!"

"It's just blood, I covered myself in it and they don't notice it. You shouldn't have come here it's dangerous." She says.

She looks at me with concern. She's changed, she's so confident and serious. She's gained a whole new personality.

"Brittany, what happened to you?" I ask.

"We need to walk away from here, here, I need to help cover you up," she replies. She runs her bloody hand along my face, covering it in blood, it feels disgusting. "It should help keep them away, but if you see any around stop talking to me, act dead. Don't run or make sudden movements. Ok?"  
I nod. "Tell me what happened to you."  
"Well you know I couldn't stand that place any longer San, I needed to find my parents, so I managed to get home, but they were already dead, I think they shot themselves, they left me a note saying they loved me, they seemed to know everything, they told me if I covered myself in blood and blended in, I'd be ok. I don't understand why they didn't do it themselves. So I tried to get back to the school, but they started chasing me, so I had no choice Santana, then they follow you everywhere, I couldn't get back to the school without bringing them along with me. It was too dangerous."

We keep walking further away from the lot.

"I'm glad you're alive," I whisper. "You don't know how many nights I've lied awake thinking about you."

"I always knew you'd survive, I knew you were smart, but then you came looking for me," She whispers.

"Brittany, I thought you'd be happy! You've changed"

"San, you don't know what I've seen. I've seen the whole of Lima's fate, I know who was eaten to death, who killed themselves, who tried to escape and who transformed. I've waited everyday for some savior to come but it's false hope. And now you've put yourself in terrible danger. You could be killed. The others, they've come to know me over time, but they also know I don't change anyone, it's strange how we communicate, they just think I go hunting by myself , but really I go looking for food. There's hardly any left Santana, but that's beside the point! They know who has been changed by who, they won't ignore the fact that you've just appeared."

"Then who do they think changed you?"

"The zombie who I killed in order to take his blood. I told you it's really strange. I don't know what to do with you now. I wish it could be so much more simpler, I need to get you back to McKinley."

"Why don't you come?" I ask.

"It's dangerous Santana, I don't want to put you all in danger if the others come looking for me. Plus I'm pretty sure they all hate me and they need to save what's left of the supplies."

"We've lost two of us over the past two days," I tell her.

"Who?" She asks, horrified.

"Mr. Schu and Ms. Pillsbury, Mr. Schu was bitten then Ms. P killed herself."  
"No," Brittany gasps. A tear rolls down her cheek. "I hate this Santana, it's horrible. I've seen so many of the others, Sugar, Karofsky, Tina, and Artie, oh it was horrible, he couldn't run!"  
She starts to cry, I hold her against me, getting my clothes bloodstained.

"Look I got here safely, maybe I can get us back," I tell her.

"No, we'll have to wait until tomorrow, it's getting dark and night time is too dangerous. It's when most of them come out, we'll have to find somewhere to hide although it's kind of impossible. Will you blend in if you have to? Be prepared though, you'll see people who knew. But remember they don't remember you, they can't talk, they only groan, they can manage some words and understand some but that's it, you show the slightest sign your human and they will attack."

"Ok, I'll blend in!" I promise. "Brittany, will you really come back with me?"  
"Ok," she sighs. "But we can't live in the school forever. We'll have to think of something. Let's keep walking towards it."

"Are there any more?" I ask. "Alive, I mean."

"I don't think so, the zombies haven't seem to have fed in a while. They just go back to old carcuses and try to find any remaining bits of flesh."

"But what happens if they don't feed?" I ask.

"I don't know," she shrugs, "A few seem to have disappeared from the lot while more have joined, maybe they thought by coming to us they could find food. the zombies are getting weaker, maybe they're like dogs, they go away to die."

I look at my girlfriend in amazement. "Hey Brit, when did you get so smart?"

She laughs. "When I go hunting for food, I always find some book or another, I like to take my time and fill it with whatver activity I can. I surprised you didn't I?"

I laugh too. "You really have, Brit. Come on, let's keep walking. I love you, I hope you know that."

"I love you too, San," she sighs.


	10. Chapter 10

We keep walking as the sun continues to set.

"We'll have to find somewhere safe soon," she tells me. "They'll start appearing soon."

"They're really gross and creepy," I frown. "Can we please go somewhere where they can't find us? Do you know anywhere?"  
"I think so, there's some apartments nearby, if we climb up to the top ones, they can only climb a number of stairs before they collapse."

She leads me to a huge block of apartments, I can tell from the outside that they're expensive pieces of property, something my family couldn't even afford to rent.

"Wow, can you get inside, isn't there usually alarms and shit?" I ask.

"I know a way in, oh crap Santana, act dead," she whispers and bows her head and spreads her arms out in front of her, like a zombie out of a movie. I look to my right and see a zombie walking nearby. I copy her actions.

"Don't do anything human like," she mutters under her breath, "just wait for him to pass."

The zombie begins to groan as he gets closer to us. I hold my breath and bite my lip, I'm so nervous that I'll have to sneeze or cough. Maybe my scent hasn't been covered up enough.

He stops in front of me, I wait for him to move but he doesn't. He begins to growl louder, his eyes are fixed on me, he doesn't even blink. Then I know that he knows. He lunges towards me, I don't have time to react, his hand is on my neck, ready to rip out my throat. There is a gunshot from behind and he falls from the ground. Brittany stands with a pistol in her hand.

"Where'd you get that from?" I ask in surprise.

"I found it so I carry it around with me," she frowns. "I really don't like doing that Santana, even if they are really dead."

She's getting back to her old self again.

"I'm sorry Brit, I promise you won't have to do it again, I'll take the gun, we better go inside, Sam told me that the gunshot attracts them."

"Yes, it does," she replies, snapping out of her sadness. "Come on I'll show you how to get inside."

We walk around to the back of the complex where there's a fire stairs. The block is about twenty stories high.

"We need to climb these, we're going to the penthouse, it's on the top, it's safest, I've been here before so I've already disabled the alarm."

I follow her up the stairs. "We have to be quick, they'll be here any minute!" She barks down to me. So we begin climbing faster. I've never been great with heights so I don't dare look down. Finally we reach the top floor, she hops over a railing onto a balcony. I copy her.

She pulls open the balcony door and steps inside. The inside of the penthouse was once probably amazing, now all the furniture has been turned over and glass and ornaments smashed.

"Watch where you step," she warns me as she closes all the curtains. "Are you hungry?"

I nod. "I haven't eaten all day."  
There's some frozen food there but we can't cook it , it's too risky. They might never leave the complex if they can smell food. There's some other things there like fruit and vegetables, they have rotten a bit but it's better than nothing."

She throws me over an apple that is almost completely brown but I take it gratefully. I'm so hungry I could just about eat anything.

"Brittany," I say, in between bites. "You said you knew what happened to everyone."

"Yeah," she answers and looks at me.

"So you know what happened to my mom?"

She nods sadly. "I don't want to upset you San."

"Is she still out there? Did she change?"

"No, she's not."

"So she's dead? Was it painful?"

She nods again. "I'm sorry Santana, I really liked her."

My eyes well up with tears, "Thanks Brit, I know she really liked you too. Well at least she's out of her suffering. Even if her death wasn't nice."  
"I buried her," Brittany whispers. "What was left, it didn't seem right to leave her there."

I'm so touched, I don't know what to say other than thank you. But she deserves so much more, she saved my life twice and honored my mom. The tears begin to run down my face.

"Do you think the other's will ever forgive me?" She asks as she sits down on the blue sofa I'm standing beside, I sit down behind her.

"They're going to forgive you before they even consider forgiving me. I've hurt them and betrayed them, maybe they won't even let me back inside."

"They'll get over it, they're are friends Santana, friends stick together. They'd rather us alive than dead." She says comfortingly. She peeps put the window behind us.

"There's some zombies out there. About a dozen, I'm sure'll go over night, but we have to wait until the coast is clear tomorrow, otherwise they'll get suspicious. They can be really intelligent creatures for such stupid people," she comments and I smile. She yawns. "Sorry I haven't slept in a while."

She cuddles in to my shoulder and within minutes she's fast asleep. I rest my head on shoulders and for the first time in quite some time I get a proper nights sleep, no pills, no nightmares, just Brittany at my side.


	11. Chapter 11

"Santana," a soft voice calls me. My eyes flutter open and she's smiling at me. "Good morning."

"What time is it?" I ask.

"It's just gone nine, Santana they're all gone, we need to get going."

"Sure, but we should bring all the food we can get," I say.

"I have that sorted," she says, holding up a plastic white bag. "I've been up a while, I didn't want to wake you."

"You're amazing, I'm glad you're some way back to yourself again," I say and kiss her cheek.

"It's because you're here San," she sighs. "You ready?"

I nod and we leave the exact way we came in. I climb down the stairs first and help Brittany on the last few steps. The wind is strong and cold, I fasten the zip on my jacket. I'm so glad I have warm clothes on, I think I'd freeze if I had anything less on.

The streets are empty and cold. Brittany grabs my hand an squeezes it and we continue to walk down the deserted and broken path. I still can't get my head around to accept the fact that Lima is no longer a living town. Nearly everyone I know is dead. I begin to think about my grandmother. I haven't seen Abuela since I told her about my sexuality. I wonder if she's dead and how she died, or if she's alive and even concerned about the fate of her granddaughter. We were once so close that she would have been my main concern during a time like this. But sometimes you have to pick love over family.

And out of nowhere a smell worse than any I've come across hits us. It smells like rotting fish and corpses combined. We both have to cover our faces.

"What is that?" I cough. "And where is it coming from?"

"It's coming from over there, I think" Brittany replies, pointing to the elementary school yard across the street. "I want to check it out."

"I don't know Brittany maybe it's dangerous," I reply as I follow her. We cross the street but we can't see anything significant. The empty school yard with it's broken down gates creep me out. I went to this school and I've never seen it this dead. The flowers and the grass have died and it looks like some zombies forced their way inside the building by the looks of the bloody doors. The set of swings move with the wind, creaking as they do. I shudder at the sound.

"I'm going around the back," Brittany whispers and she quietly tip toes around the outside of the high fence. I copy her and we stop behind a dumpster at the back of the school grounds, just outside the playground. And the stench is stronger than ever, it fills my mouth and lungs and I desperatley want to leave.

"Look!" She exclaims and points to the playground which seems to be scattered with large objects. I look closer and I gasp, they're not just objects they're all bodies.

"Are they kids?" I whisper.

"No, they're zombies," she replies. "I recognise some of them from the parking lot. Santana look!"

We watch silently as a weak and thin zombie slowly stumbles across the yard, groaning, but this time groaning as if she's in severe pain. She coughs and then collapses on the ground motionless.

"Is she dead?" I ask, shocked by this sight.

"I think so," Brittany replies, her face suddenly lights up. "Santana! Do you know what this means? It means that they're running out of food and they're dying. If we can wait long enough, they'll all die! "

I think about this. She might be right, we could go and gather other survivors, maybe have another shot at life. Maybe in time, it will be a better life than before, no predjudice or inequality.

"Brittany we need to get back to the others!" I exclaim. I don't even care how much they hate me anymore.

We pick up the pace as we return to our path. And before we know it, McKinley is within out sites. As we walk in the gates, Brittany stops and stares at the school.

"Are you ok?" I ask.

She nods tearfully. "I wish I'd never left, look what danger I put you in. They probably hate us."

"Brittany, it was worth it," I smile and grab her hand and I lead her around to the back of the school to the window from which I escaped. They haven't locked it, maybe they were hoping I'd come back.

I pull open the window and climb in, I reach out my two hands to Brittany and help her inside. I inhale my surroundings, how I've missed the smell of sweat and fear. I close the window loudly. I hear footsteps running down the hallway.

I brace myself. It's Rachel, she stops and freezes, she looks from me to Brittany and her face falls. She lets out a high pitched scream, high only enough for her to manage.

"ZOMBIE!" She screams as Finn, Sam and Puck run down the hallway towards us, followed closely by Quinn, Kurt and Blaine. I stand where I am, confused.

"Santana, " Quinn breathes. She then looks behind me. "Oh no, what happened to you? Did SHE do that to you?" Her voice sounds very harsh and angry all of a sudden.

"Do what?" I ask, still puzzled by their reaction.

"We have to shoot them," Puck announces.

"What?" I choke out. "Why?"  
"Santana, we're really sorry," Quinn sighs. "It's too dangerous."

I look at Brittany and then I realise what has startled them. We're still covered in blood.

"No!" I exclaim. "We're not zombies. We just covered ourselves in blood so they wouldn't notice us. That's how Brittany has survived up until now!"

"Brittany, " Quinn whispers. "Is that true?"

"Yes," Brittany smiles. "Santana found me even though she thought I was a zombie."

"Quinn, Rachel check them for bite marks," Sam orders.

"So you're the new leader?" I raise my eyebrows at him.

"For the moment," he smiles.

"Come on, let's go into the choir room," Quinn smiles. She seems relieved. They all seem to have forgotten that I hurt them and endangered them.

"We have news," Brittany pipes. "They're beginning to die. The zombies. We saw them , didn't we Santana? There's nothing for them to eat anymore. I don't think they've fed for weeks. Soon they'll all be gone. We can go outside again."  
"Yes, it's true," I confirm. "We can find other survivors."

Everyone smiles. "This is incredible," Finn says. "We'll be safe again."

"This is like the best day we've had yet," Rachel beams. "Welcome home Brittany and Santana."

And as the nine of us all hug, Rachel's words ring in my ears, _Welcome home._ I'm safe and warm and with people I love. I've never felt more at home in my life.


End file.
